Justice Blog

When Tiffany Deutsch went to Malawi in the fall of 2011, she wasn’t sure what to expect. “I just wanted to do whatever God wanted me to do,” she remembers.

On the second day of her trip, as they drove up to the village of Chikudzulire, a group of singing and dancing women surrounded them and welcomed them to their village. “We got out of the van and joined them as we sang and danced our way to the community center.”

Tiffany was surprised by what she encountered in Chikudzulire. “I had prepared myself for the poverty.  But I was surprised by the joy of the people. They are so thankful for all they have.”

Tiffany and some other young women on the team were able to go out and “just love on" people.  Among many other things, they played with children and participated in the feeding programs funded by Missions’ Advent Conspiracy. They painted a newly built tea room. They participated in a large conference for those infected and affected by HIV/AIDS.

The most impactful experience was the Home-Based Care visits in Mgona. Mgona is a slum and home to 60,000 people of which about 25,000 are orphans and vulnerable children. The HIV infection rateis about 35%. Tiffany says. “Mgona is the poorest place I have ever been. Most patients we visited are lying on the floor dying of AIDS. We would pray, visit, and read Scripture to them.” The Home-Based Care volunteers from Somebody Cares provided food, medicine and help around the home. Tiffany was again surprised, because she expected these people to have lost all hope, but they hadn’t. “It was amazing, because they were praising God for the smallest thing—if they could sit up, when they couldn’t sit up just a day ago,” she says. “This was definitely one of the more humbling days.”

As she settles back into life at home, Tiffany is trying to slow down and focus on how much we have here. The people of Malawi taught her that true joy – pure joy - comes from recognition of God’s blessings, even amidst suffering or scarcity. “Here, we have people who don’t appreciate what they have—they only want more. The people in Malawi appreciate everything.”

If you would like to join a short-term team going to Malawi in 2012, go to http://www.mission68.org/connect/do-justice/around-the-world/africa/opportunities-trips/ for more information and application forms.

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